Urban Exploration Is Dangerous – Here’s Why We Still Do It
10 years of Broken Window Theory (subtitles available) Episode #226
What started as pure curiosity became the journey of our lives. For a decade, we’ve explored abandoned buildings, forgotten military sites, lost cities and places most people will never see. Along the way, there were unforgettable moments – but also close calls, serious mistakes, and situations we never talked about… until now. This anniversary video is a raw, behind-the-scenes look at 10 years of urbex and YouTube. Unseen footage. Unreleased stories. Our biggest fails and riskiest moments – plus honest reflections on what this journey has really been like. #urbex #abandonedplaces #bwturbex
Thank you for being part of this! Without this community, none of it would have been possible. After 10 years, we’re just getting started.
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00:00 – Intro
00:56 – 10th Anniversary
03:59 – The Videos That Blew Up VS The Ones That Deserved More
12:20 – How to Create a BWT video
16:43 – Our Most Dangerous Exploration (so far)
26:59 – Fails, Close Calls & Bad Ideas
33:37 – The Future Of BWT
39:15 – 2025 Cinematic Recap
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Music:
“Undercurrent” – Harper Rey
“when i hop” – baegel
“Riot (Instrumental Version)” – Blood Red Sun
“The Walking Dead – Billy Van Remix” – Billy Van
“Nordic Light” – Jamie Norwood
“We Are Nomads” – Walt Adams
“Running through the Dark” – Roots and Recognition
48 Comments
Join our Telegram channel for live updates and to help shape what comes next ► https://t.me/+tj316u7NDh02MjMy
Thank you for being part of this! Without this community, none of it would have been possible. After 10 years, we're just getting started.
I'm going to be in Switzerland in October I'm so sad 🙁
I'm too old for urbex, but there's all the abandoned chateaus and mountain lodges in the alps, and I think that would be a beautiful kind of timeless, frozen decay.
As far as the questions:
Cups
And for the rest, I don't know. I very much enjoy how the videos, over time, turned into stories. There's a Chinese urbex person on youtube, and what she's doing is basically documenting historical, abandoned sites, and she frequently talks to people in her videos and I think that's great. Her channel name is Honglin Li, and I would suggest you guys watch a few of her more recent videos for some examples of how other people confront these problems.
The story behind the decay is what makes it meaningful. It sounds like youtube is not being good to you as a platform.
Hi, guys. I love your work and just wanted to tell you, as an Argentine and Latin American myself, to never understimate danger/risk here in Latam, most of people will be nice to you -even bad guys (and some will just wait for the right time to do their thing) things can change at any moment without you see it coming, it doesn't happen all the time but it happens-. Also, make sure to add Spanish subs to the vids from Brazil! Lot of us love Brazil and I'm sure you could have a Latin American audience interested in your content but not all ppl understand English/Portuguese. All the best! 😉
It's been 10 years?? That doesn't seem possible. I will always remember that Walking Dead opening song. I loved that. I also loved Til's pony tail.
i enjoyed your work for all 10 years . I follow you and Proper People but your work is superior . Don't change a thing . You are wonderful cinematographers, you really care about your work . You don't goof around and it shows in the quality of your videos. Its hard to produce good content so hire some folks to do editing or use a service. But don't change and if you'll forgive me, stop asking people what you should do. Do what you want. This is your art. Til and Marco (who i have crush on) are perfect . You are a great team. I wish the most success.
Congratulations on 10 years guy's !!! I have been here a long time I have alway's enjoyed all of your work such a fresh approach to everything you show us I love it !! I have been a welder for 25 plus years as a profession I want to help you guys I am in the United States but I don know how . I will alway's be here to enjoy everything you do. Congratulations again guys !!! CHEERS TO ANOTHER 10 YEARS AHEAD !!!🍻🍻
Here's how I think you could format both your film making passions in a way that makes it more accessible to the average viewer:
A season of your show is a particular place.
Seasons gets broken up with a series of shorter episodes that flow one into the next with hooks and teasers for next week.
Ex: Episode 1: introduction,
History, teasers of the season, heartache, triumph, beautiful cinematography, and a clear narrated mission statement of what you're trying to do! No deviations or random this and that… too confusing (5-10min)
episode 2) example: community left behind after industrial collapse. Interview people, explain life, environmental impact lalala
Always weaving cinematography in and out of interviews (10-15min)
Next week's episode, explore the old mine, or factory, whatever (full explore/camping 30min)
(Clear storytelling voiceovers! What are you trying to figure out? What's the purpose in your heart of what you want to learn from the people? What can viewers do to help solve what's troubling the people?
Can your next episode go so far as to trigger political action or public pressure etc Who's already working on the problem? Interview them?
Conclusion episode that touches everything previous, discoveries, all the random stuff that didn't fit, what you learnt, closing beautiful cinematography
Boom next place next season
Can you make a teaser for the next season at the end of the previous?
(It's hard for people to find the time to sit and watch just a humanitarian documentary of some place they're never going to go if they're not already deeply invested from previous episodes and/or if the storytelling feels broken with no flow)
I was looking forward to the episode about the Romanian town that got flooded by toxic substance and although it was very sad and heartbraking how even the community wasn't united, I feel the episode didn't disappoint me…
I think a q and a sessions are always interesting and if it is from the members it may help increase the membership too…
You guys are the best!! Nothing comes close to your videos!!!!! Sorry to say it YouTube that's hurting you. all i will say, Look into it!! I would follow you to any Platform you show your content on and Im sure all others will as well!!! ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
Hello my name is Catherine and BWT was my first utube channel that I subscribed to. I love and enjoy all your adventures . Well done on 10 years 😊
My wife and I have been watching you guys religiously since 2020 when we found you during COVID and fell in love with your channel and The proper people.
It's been our Sunday routine when we get our kids to sleep to check in on you guys and watch any videos we haven't seen (or want to watch again 😂)
We loved this format and would love a recap like this each year if possible!
I'm ~20 minutes into the video so maybe you'll answer these, but a few thoughts/additional questions we have for you guys:
1. For the videos that are at that 3.8M mark, do you see yourselves going back there? Or uploading additional content in the same abandoned cities?
2. Do you ever see yourselves hiring an editor to help you pump more videos out? I feel like it'd free up time for you guys to continue to film but also get through your backlog. You could still do the voiceovers and control the vision but it'd help get more videos out. I think pumping out more shorts and reels that are linked to your videos could help out!
3. Do you have any team ups with The Proper People or anyone else in the near future planned?
4. I just heard the part where you mentioned YouTube is struggling with pushing out the "Non-urbexing" videos… I think you have a good enough base that loves everything you push out that you should just keep doing what you love, even if it's not 100% connected with urbexing. Bald & Bankrupt grew his base on touring the Soviet Union but has since done tons of videos in Mexico, South America, Africa, etc… so don't worry – keep pumping out videos and people will keep watching!
5. I lived in Poland for a couple of years so any videos in Poland are my favorite so that one with the fog and the Polish MP kicked you out was one of my favorites 😅
6. Do you guys plan on touring the US? If you ever find anything cool in Arizona, Utah, Idaho, or anywhere in the southwest that you want to tour we'd love to host you guys!
7. Can we buy canvas/large sizes of your pictures?
8. Do you have any additional plans to partner with national geographic?
Keep up the great work, we love your content!!
I have been watching BWT for years. Congratulations on 10 years!
I thought your finale on Romania was fantastic! Definitely one of your best! If anyone out there hasn't seen it yet, go watch!
Been a subscriber for a long time. Have always enjoyed your work. If I see another slop thumbnail from you I'm unsubscribing.
Been following you for almost 2 to 3 years now , and i just love everything that makes this channel special ❤️ , be safe , happy and can't wait too see new adventures
I have been with you guys on Youtube from day and am fascinated by your content. Here's to the ten years Thank you and take care.
WOW… 10 years already congrats guys ….
I always love your content and hope there are many years to come ….
Greetsz from friesland… max👌😉😎
I love your content guys. Ihr macht da einen echt guten job! ich hätte richtig bock dasselbe zu machen..
i have multiple channels making videos like this asking for views for videos that did not go well. i think youtube made you do this.
Really like your videos, trough your great camerawork you almost feel like if you ar there yourself. As a viewer I like the regular uploads of urban exploration, the more of those amazing places I can see through your video's the better. But I also like the stories you tell in for example the balkan series. Keep up the good work and I hope that the algorithm wil like you again as before;)
I shared your film — the village swamped by toxic sludge – with a friend and he was disappointed that you hadn’t pursued a story about the mining companies that caused it 💁 I explained to him what urbex is and that investigative journalism was beyond the scope of what you do but he thought that your presentation was so strong that you could have been professional documentary makers investigating corruption and crime. You see, I think the quality of what you do is way beyond YouTube. And it really is, I don’t know how these things are done but you have the skills to easily transfer to mainstream television or documentary making.
El cariño, dedicación y pasión que le han dedicado al canal, sin duda se puede notar en cada uno de sus videos. El enfoque cinematográfico y la forma de contar historias sin tener que recurrir al recurso "paranormal" es cautivador, porque se siente mas real. Leer sus historias son tan fascinantes como ver sus videos, quizás deberían incluir alguna sección en formato podcast. Espero sus videos con ansias, gracias por hacer lo que hacen, por entregarnos pedacitos de historias desconocidas pero muy importantes. Comentario en español para que sepan que son vistos desde el otro lado del mundo (y porque no sé expresarme en inglés) Saludos desde Chile ❤❤
I'm following your journey now for around 7 Years, thank you guys for being there and creating those amazing documentarys for us! Liebe Grüße
My favorte urbex channel on YouTube! Congrats on your 10th year! I've watched nearly every one of your videos. My faves are any of the ghost town vids, power plants or factories, and of course the magnificent churches!
Congrats on 10 years! Love all your videos and cinematography. Keep up the great work, you guys make the best stuff.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and a little behind the scenes! Have you ever considered applying for cultural funding? I feel like you have the skills and ability to convey powerful stories, with a great eye for cinematic shots. Applying for funding for a documentary-style film could really help.
Here in the Netherlands, for example, there’s IDFA (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam), which supports international makers every year through specific funding programs. Maybe something for you guys to look into?
I've been watching you guys for more than 8 years. Love seeing you still doing stuff together after all this time. I must admit that the latest videos feel a bit unfocused and some parts meander a little. I think what you are doing is important, but maybe some themes would be better summarized with a classic voiceover instead of showing the full back-and-forth with people who aren't trained for the camera. It might feel less honest and raw, but this is YouTube, here infotainment is king. This is my only criticism. In any case, I'll be watching all your future videos, no matter what the topic or style. So best of luck, Till and Marco!
I haven't watched your Toxic Lake video as I thought I had seen it before, but maybe that was some other explorer? Anyways the youtube algorithm seems more about luck and some black magic than about the quality of the video. I was exploring in the late 1990ties and 2000's before social media existed, it was personal websites and mailing lists back than, mostly text and low quality pics.
I really like that your videos are about the places you explore and not you as explorers. Personally I'm more interested in adventurous videos and not so much the human interest and history stories but I hope you do not become too focused on the popularity and number of views of your uploads but you continue to upload the stories you want to share.
I appreciate your explores and dedication to history and translation accuracy. I have been following for a couple years now and even when there aren’t frequent like some explorers, when I see there is a new video, I can’t wait to “join you” as I know I’ll never see the things you do. Keep up the good work and keep enjoying what you do. Love from Wisconsin, USA.
Yeah, I was trying to fin Toni Instagram Page but I can’t find it
Ein schöner Beitrag!
Congratulations on 10 years! I love how you interact with the people you meet and really get involved with their daily life. You are very talented young men and very appreciated for the content you make! ❤❤
35:30 Talk with railroad maintenance companies like Loram, see if one is willing to rent one of their rail inspection/light maintenance vehicles to you for the duration of the trip.
With rail inspection/light maintenance vehicles I mean the 4×4 trucks that have rail wheels on retractable mechanisms.
Do videos on things that bring you joy ..it comes through in the videos. Don't let other people dictate this ..suggest maybe, but only do things that bring you joy and intrigue. 🥰
Thx for the many years of entertainment and education.
I remember when I first found this channel. As you said, it was for abandoned exploration. I slowly noticed a change. I really enjoyed the new vibe. Watching the Italy abandoned city was great. Full of information and a hint of sorrow as it was all left behind. Recently the video of the drowned village in toxic waste was well done and informative. I'll continue to watch and learn from this channel.
De fato esta música de abertura e incrível
Ela age emocionalmente
Nos passa ha sensação de volta ao tempo
Não acho interessante Transmissão ao vivo, como varais pessoas de lugares diferentes assistem, o horários não coincidem
Podem vender canecas com fotos, roupas, quadros com as fotos das explorações, ( com nome do local e data )
Podem vender em plataformas onde pessoas de outros países possam adquirir
Como Amazon Aliexpress etc ….
Coloquem também legenda no idioma Português Brasil
Grande abraço…
the Romina episodes are my top 5 favorite. the interviews were poignant and really showed the helplessness of the residents. Im a 20+ year metal fabricator/welder. I'm moving to Poland in August/September. I could make myself available for any metal fabricating or welding you may need for your railway project.
What you guys did is document history you have no idea how important that is for future generations, all your experdicions are a melting pot for conversations about the world we live in ❤❤ thank you so much for your contribution to history on film, God bless you both ❤❤
I think that sludge over that town in the mountain's is something like a landslide because of heavy rain instead of the usual frozen snow that would have kept the ground in place. I also think that Nuclear reactor's would have been the reason for the sudden drop in snow fall, The Nuclear Plant's would have used a lot of the North sea ice of Antarctica to cool the Nuclear Reactor's. Maybe Japan and Russia didn't use Antarctic sea ice because their reactor's melted down. Don't forget how important your channel is to put together the real pieces of the past. People need to learn the truth and it really is out there.
I sent a dm on Instagram in regards to the Luxembourg mines. You've not replied. Good luck
Verfolge euch schon lange und finde es schade, dass ihr bei dieser Qualität nicht mehr Aufmerksamkeit bekommt.
Bild, Schnitt und Ton sind top, die Locations stark – und die Szenen abseits der Spots (Einheimische interviewen, Autopannen usw.) sind sehr interessant und authentisch. Ihr setzt klar auf Qualität statt Quantität.
Ich glaube, dass heutzutage für die breite Masse vor allem spektakuläre Locations und viel Action eine große Rolle spielen. Ihr habt dagegen eine ruhige Atmosphäre in den Videos, die den Fokus auf den Verfall legt, was ich persönlich sehr schätze. Macht weiter so!
Thank you for sharing it again, misses your videos and enjoying it.
Wenn Ihr Livestreams machen wollt, könnt ihr das auf mehreren Plattformen gleichzeitig, falls ihr Hilfe beim einrichten braucht meldet Euch m/
Yes, your original opening theme music! It had me ready to follow you guys anywhere! If you wondered about 'what viewers want' please don't always go by our brief comments. Pretty sure most of your viewers appreciate the gear you lug about, editing and production. And your overheating cars! Voice-overs under a doonah, that's gold. I came for the BWT Urbex and stayed for the spirit you guys bring to your productions. T. 🇦🇺🐞
Very nice to watch and listen
An excellent watch. Thanks. Although the urbex is a good hook, your wider interest in the world and its inhabitants is what makes your programmes greatly superior so please don’t stop this aspect. I am a content creator for a heritage tourist railway and I genuinely laughed out loud at the waiting for things to render and then upload sequence. Our channel has nothing like as many subscribers as yours but we are also subject to the YouTube algorithm. Our views have inexplicably dropped drastically in the last year or so despite making better videos so don’t be disheartened; your content is second to none, technically and emotionally. Keep it up and thanks.
You guys are the best 🖤 Thank you so much for this video. If you haven’t already you guys should make metal prints of your favorite photos. I would buy one immediately.